Voter turnout and municipal amalgamations: Evidence from Denmark
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Voter turnout and municipal amalgamations : Evidence from Denmark. / Bhatti, Yosef; Hansen, Kasper M.
In: Local Government Studies, Vol. 45, No. 5, 2019, p. 697-723.Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Voter turnout and municipal amalgamations
T2 - Evidence from Denmark
AU - Bhatti, Yosef
AU - Hansen, Kasper M.
PY - 2019
Y1 - 2019
N2 - The study utilizes evidence from the Danish 2007 municipal reform to inquire into the relationship between municipal amalgamations and voter turnout, that is, the classical discussion on size and democracy. The Danish municipal reform is particularly suited for investigating the relationship as a large number of units were merged due to reasons thought to be unrelated with the democratic performance while others were left unchanged. This allows us to investigate the relationship in a quasi-experimental setup. The study finds some evidence of a short-term positive effect on turnout and only limited evidence of a medium- to long-term negative effect when comparing amalgamated and non-amalgamated municipalities. However, stronger indications of negative effects on turnout are found when considering the intensity of the amalgamations.
AB - The study utilizes evidence from the Danish 2007 municipal reform to inquire into the relationship between municipal amalgamations and voter turnout, that is, the classical discussion on size and democracy. The Danish municipal reform is particularly suited for investigating the relationship as a large number of units were merged due to reasons thought to be unrelated with the democratic performance while others were left unchanged. This allows us to investigate the relationship in a quasi-experimental setup. The study finds some evidence of a short-term positive effect on turnout and only limited evidence of a medium- to long-term negative effect when comparing amalgamated and non-amalgamated municipalities. However, stronger indications of negative effects on turnout are found when considering the intensity of the amalgamations.
KW - amalgamation
KW - jurisdiction size
KW - participation
KW - quasi-experiment
KW - Voter turnout
M3 - Journal article
AN - SCOPUS:85059696685
VL - 45
SP - 697
EP - 723
JO - Local Government Studies
JF - Local Government Studies
SN - 0300-3930
IS - 5
ER -
ID: 214506408